April 9
Events * 193 - Septimius Severus is proclaimed Roman Emperor by the army in Illyricum (in the Balkans). * 475 - Byzantine Emperor Basiliscus issues a circular letter (Enkyklikon) to the bishops of his empire, supporting the Monophysiste christological position. *1241 - Battle of Liegnitz: Mongol forces defeat the Polish and German armies. *1413 - Henry V is crowned King of England. *1440 - Christopher of Bavaria is appointed King of Denmark. *1667 - First public art exhibition opens in Paris. *1682 - Robert Cavelier de La Salle discovers the mouth of the Mississippi River, claims it for France and names it Louisiana. *1865 - American Civil War: Robert E. Lee surrenders the Army of Northern Virginia (26,765 troops) to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse, effectively ending the war. *1867 - Alaska purchase: Passing by a single vote, the United States Senate ratifies a treaty with Russia for the purchase of Alaska. *1909 - The U.S. Congress passes the Payne-Aldrich Tariff Act. *1913 - The Brooklyn Dodgers' Ebbets Field opens. *1916 - World War I: Battle of Verdun - German forces launch their third offensive of the battle. *1917 - World War I: Battle of Arras - The battle begins with Canadian forces executing a massive assault on Vimy Ridge. *1937 - The Kamikaze arrives at Croydon Airport in London - it is the first Japanese-built aircraft to fly to Europe. *1939 - Marian Anderson sings at the Lincoln Memorial, after having been refused the right to sing at the Daughters of the American Revolution's Constitution Hall. *1940 - World War II: Germany invades Denmark and Norway. *1942 - World War II: Battle of Bataan/Bataan Death March - United States forces surrender on the Bataan Peninsula. Japanese Navy launches air raid on Trincomalee in Ceylon (Sri Lanka); Royal Navy aircraft carrier [[Wikipedia:HMS Hermes (95)|HMS Hermes]] and Royal Australian Navy Destroyer [[Wikipedia:HMAS Vampire (D68)|HMAS Vampire]] are sunk off the island's east coast. *1945 - World War II: The German pocket battleship Admiral Scheer is sunk. * 1945 - World War II: Battle of Königsberg, in East Prussia, ends. * 1945 - The United States Atomic Energy Commission formed *1947 - The Glazier-Higgins-Woodward Tornadoes kill 181 and injure 970 in Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. * 1947 - The Journey of Reconciliation, the first interracial Freedom Ride begins through the upper South in violation of Jim Crow laws. The riders wanted enforcement of the United States Supreme Court's 1946 Irene Morgan decision that banned racial segregation in interstate travel. *1948 - Jorge Eliécer Gaitán's assassination provokes a violent riot in Bogotá (the Bogotazo), and a further ten years of violence in all of Colombia (La violencia). * 1948 - Massacre at Deir Yassin. *1953 - Warner Brothers premieres the first 3-D film, entitled House of Wax *1957 - The Suez Canal in Egypt is cleared and opens to shipping *1959 - Mercury program: NASA announces the selection of the United States' first seven astronauts, which the news media quickly dub the "Mercury Seven". *1967 - The first Boeing 737 (a 100 series) takes its maiden flight. *1969 - The "Chicago Eight" plead not guilty on federal charges of conspiracy to incite a riot at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois. *1975 - The first game of the Philippine Basketball Association, the second oldest professional basketball league in the world. *1980 - Israeli troops move into Lebanon * 1980 - Mohammad Baqir al-Sadr is murdered by Saddam Husseins baath party, Along with his sister Bint al-Hoda Sadr. They are commonly known as the 2 martyrs by Iraqi shia muslims. *1986 - The government of France rules against the privatization of French automaker Renault. *1991 - Georgia declares its independence from the Soviet Union. *1992 - US Federal Court finds former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega guilty on drug and racketeering charges. He is sentenced to 30 years in prison. * 1992 - John Major's Conservative Party wins an unprecedented fourth general election victory in the United Kingdom. *1997 - Lockheed Martin unveils the F-22 Raptor Stealth air superiority fighter. *1998 - The National Prisoner of War Museum is located in Andersonville, on the site of the American Civil War Andersonville POW camp. *1999 - Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara, President of Niger, is assassinated. *2003 - 2003 invasion of Iraq: Baghdad falls to American forces. *2005 - HRH Charles weds Camilla Parker Bowles. Births *1336 - Tamerlane (Timur), Central Asian, Turkic conqueror (d. 1405) *1498 - John, French churchman (d. 1550) *1597 - John Davenport, Connecticut pioneer (d. 1670) *1634 - Albertine Agnes of Nassau, Regent of Friesland, Groningen and Drenthe (d. 1696) *1648 - Henri de Massue, French soldier and diplomat (d. 1720) *1649 - James Scott, illegitimate son of Charles II of Great Britain (d. 1685) *1680 - Philippe Néricault Destouches, French dramatist (d. 1754) *1686 - James Craggs the Younger, British politician (d. 1721) *1691 - Johann Matthias Gesner, German classical scholar (d. 1761) *1757 - Edward Pellew, British admiral (d. 1833) *1770 - Thomas Johann Seebeck, German physicist (d. 1831) *1773 - Étienne Aignan, French writer (d. 1824) *1794 - Theobald Boehm, German inventor of the modern flute (d. 1881) *1806 - Isambard Kingdom Brunel, British engineer (d. 1859) *1821 - Charles Baudelaire, French poet (d. 1867) *1830 - Eadweard Muybridge, English-born photographer and motion picture pioneer (d. 1904) *1835 - King Léopold II of Belgium (d. 1909) *1865 - Erich Ludendorff, German general in World War I (d. 1937) *1867 - Chris Watson, third Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1941) *1872 - Léon Blum, French prime minister (d. 1950) *1888 - Sol Hurok, Russian-born impresario (d. 1974) *1889 - Efrem Zimbalist, Russian violinist (d. 1985) *1895 - Michel Simon, French actor (d. 1975) *1897 - John B. Gambling, American radio talk-show host (d. 1974) *1898 - Curly Lambeau, American football coach, executive (d. 1965) * 1898 - Paul Robeson, American singer and activist (d. 1976) *1903 - Ward Bond, American actor (d. 1960) *1904 - Sharkey Bonano, American musician (d. 1972) *1905 - J. William Fulbright, U.S. Senator from Arkansas (d. 1995) *1906 - Antal Dorati, Hungarian conductor (d. 1988) * 1906 - Rafaela Aparicio, Spanish actress (d. 1996) *1908 - Victor Vasarely, Hungarian-born painter (d. 1997) *1910 - Abraham Ribicoff, American politician (d. 1998) *1912 - Lew Kopelew, Russian author (d. 1997) *1915 - Daniel Johnson, Quebec politician (d. 1968) *1917 - Johannes Bobrowski, German lyricist and writer (d. 1965) * 1917 - Brad Dexter, American actor (d. 2002) *1918 - Jørn Utzon, Danish architect *1919 - J. Presper Eckert, American computer pioneer (d. 1995) *1921 - Frankie Thomas, American actor (d. 2006) *1922 - Carl Amery, German writer (d. 2005) *1926 - Hugh Hefner, American editor and publisher, founder of Playboy *1928 - Tom Lehrer, American musician and mathematician * 1928 - Paul Arizin, American basketball player (d. 2006) *1930 - F. Albert Cotton, American chemist (d. 2007) *1931 - Richard Hatfield, Canadian politician (d. 1991) *1932 - Jim Fowler, American zoologist * 1932 - Armin Jordan, Swiss conductor (d. 2006) * 1932 - Carl Perkins, American musician (d. 1998) * 1932 - Cheeta, chimpanzee actor *1933 - Jean-Paul Belmondo, French actor *1934 - Bill Birch, New Zealand politician *1935 - Avery Schreiber, American actor (d. 2002) *1937 - Marty Krofft, Canadian children's television producer *1938 - Viktor Chernomyrdin, Russian politician *1939 - Michael Learned, American actress *1940 - Jim Roberts, Canadian ice hockey player *1941 - Chu Song-woong, Korean stage actor (d. 1985) *1942 - Brandon De Wilde, American actor (d. 1972) *1943 - Terry Knight, American music promoter (Grand Funk Railroad) (d. 2004) *1945 - Peter Gammons, American baseball journalist * 1945 - Steve Gadd, American session drummer *1946 - David Webb, English football player and coach *1948 - Jaya Bachchan, Indian actress *1953 - Hal Ketchum, American musician *1954 - Dennis Quaid, American actor * 1954 - Iain Duncan Smith, British politician *1955 - Joolz Denby, English poet and novelist *1957 - Seve Ballesteros, Spanish golfer * 1957 - Brian Alexander, British broadcaster *1961 - Mark Kelly, British keyboard player (Marillion) *1962 - Imran Sherwani, British field hockey player *1963 - Marc Jacobs, American fashion designer *1964 - Rick Tocchet, Canadian ice hockey player * 1964 - Rob Awalt, American football player * 1964 - Soyo Oka, Japanese musician *1965 - Jeff Zucker, American television executive * 1965 - Paulina Porizkova, Czechoslovakian-born actress and supermodel * 1965 - Jay Wesley Neill, American convicted murderer (d. 2002) *1966 - Cynthia Nixon, American actress *1967 - Rajendra Yadav, Indian doctor *1971 - Jacques Villeneuve, Canadian Formula 1 driver *1971 - Peter Canavan, Gaelic footballer *1974 - Jenna Jameson, American porn star *1974 - Andrew Hansen, Australian Comedian The Chaser *1974 - Alexander Pichushkin , Russian serial killer *1975 - Robbie Fowler, English footballer *1977 - Gerard Way, American musician, My Chemical Romance frontman/vocalist, Cartoonist (Umbrella Academy) *1978 - Jorge Andrade, Portuguese footballer * 1978 - Rachel Stevens, English singer (S Club) * 1978 - Vesna Pisarović, Croatian singer *1979 - Keshia Knight Pulliam, American actress * 1979 - Albert Hammond, American guitarist (The Strokes) * 1979 - Keith Nobbs, American actor *1980 - Yoanna House, American model * 1980 - Jerko Leko, Croatian footballer *1981 - Milan Bartovič, Slovak ice hockey player * 1981 - Eric Harris, Columbine High School shooter (d. 1999) * 1981 - Ireneusz Jeleń, Polish footballer * 1981 - Taylor Kitsch, Canadian actor and model * 1981 - Dennis Sarfate, American baseball player *1982 - Carlos Hernández, Costa Rican footballer *1983 - Clint Dempsey, American soccer player *1984 - Linda Chung, Hong Kong actress and singer * 1984 - Adam Loewen, Canadian baseball player *1985 - Yamashita Tomohisa, Japanese singer *1986 - Brian Larsen, American musician and record producer * 1986 - Leighton Meester, American actress *1987 - Jesse McCartney, American actor and singer * 1987 - Jarrod Mullen, Australian rugby league footballer *1998 - Elle Fanning, American child actress Deaths * 93 - Yuan An, Minister over the Masses of the Han dynasty * 491 - Zeno, Byzantine Emperor * 715 - Pope Constantine *1024 - Pope Benedict VIII *1137 - William X, Duke of Aquitaine (b. 1099) *1483 - King Edward IV of England (b. 1442) *1484 - Edward of Middleham, Prince of Wales (b. 1473) *1492 - Lorenzo de' Medici, Italian statesmen (b. 1449) *1553 - François Rabelais, French writer *1557 - Mikael Agricola, Finnish scholar (b. 1510) *1626 - Sir Francis Bacon, English philosopher, statesman, and essayist (b. 1561) *1654 - Matei Basarab, Prince of Wallachia (b. 1588) *1693 - Roger de Rabutin, French writer (b. 1618) *1747 - Simon Fraser, Scottish clan chief *1754 - Christian Wolff, German philosopher (b. 1679) *1761 - William Law, British minister (b. 1686) *1804 - Jacques Necker, French statesman (b. 1732) *1806 - William V of Orange, Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic *1876 - Charles Goodyear, American politician (b. 1804) *1889 - Michel Eugène Chevreul, French chemist (b. 1786) *1909 - Helena Modrzejewska, Polish-American actress (b. 1840) *1917 - James Hope Moulton, British scholar of Classical Greek (b. 1863) *1936 - Ferdinand Tönnies, German sociologist (b. 1855) *1940 - Mrs. Patrick Campbell, British actress (b. 1865) *1944 - Evgeniya Rudneva, Russian World War II heroine (b. 1920) *1945 - Wilhelm Canaris, German Nazi leader (b. 1887) * 1945 - Dietrich Bonhoeffer, German theologian (b. 1906) * 1945 - Georg Elser, failed assassin of Hitler (b. 1903) *1948 - George Carpenter, Australian Salvation Army general (b. 1872) * 1948 - Jorge Eliécer Gaitán, Colombian politician (b. 1903) *1951 - Vilhelm Bjerknes, Norwegian physicist (b. 1862) *1959 - Frank Lloyd Wright, American architect (b. 1867) *1961 - King Zog of Albania (b. 1895) *1963 - Eddie Edwards, American jazz trombonist (b. 1891) *1970 - Gustaf Tenggren, Swedish illustrator (b. 1896) *1976 - Dagmar Nordstrom, American composer, pianist (b. 1903) * 1976 - Phil Ochs, American singer (b. 1940) *1978 - Clough Williams-Ellis, Welsh architect (b.1883) *1982 - Wilfrid Pelletier, French Canadian conductor (b. 1896) *1988 - Brook Benton, American singer (b. 1931) * 1988 - David Prater, American singer (Sam & Dave) (b. 1937) *1991 - Martin Hannett, record producer (b. 1948) *1996 - Richard Condon, American novelist (b. 1915) * 1996 - James W. Rouse, American real estate developer, activist, and philanthropist (b. 1914) *1997 - Helene Hanff, American writer (b. 1916) * 1997 - Mae Boren Axton, American singer and songwriter (b. 1914) *1998 - Tom Cora, American cellist and composer (b. 1953) *1999 - Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara, Niger politician and general (b. 1949) * 1999 - Emiko Kado, wrestler (b. 1976) *2001 - Willie Stargell, American baseball player (b. 1940) *2002 - Leopold Vietoris, Austrian mathematician (b. 1891) * 2002 - Pat Flaherty, American racecar driver (b. 1926) *2005 - Andrea Dworkin, American feminist and writer (b. 1946) * 2005 - Scott Mason, Australian cricketer (b. 1976) *2006 - Billy Hitchcock, American baseball player, coach, and official (b. 1916) *2007 - Egon Bondy, Czech philosopher and writer (b. 1930) Holidays and observances *Araw ng Kagitingan (Day of Valor, celebrated as Bataan Day in Bataan) in the Philippines. Liturgical feasts *Desan and companions *Saint Waltrudis External links * BBC: On This Day * * On This Day in Canada ---- April 09